Change of Character
by Iron from the Fire
Summary: After a battle with a strange sorcerer, Robin becomes more harsh than usual. Is this normal? Or has something more sinister taken place? And will it tear the Titans apart or bring them closer?
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter 1**

It was one of those days. That's all Beast Boy could think as he dodged flying debris while trying to get close enough to take a shot at a villain who was terrorizing the Jump City shopping mall.

'I sure hope this day gets better, if not I don't think it could really get any worse,' thought BB to himself.

His day had gotten off to a rough start, what with his alarm clock breaking, causing him to miss more than just training but breakfast as well. He still hadn't eaten anything since the alarm went off around ten shutting down his video game and wiping out what would have been his all time score. His stomach rumbled and churned inside him with almost painful force.

"GEEEZ MAN! Can you please give up so I can get some food?! I'm dyin' here," he yelled with obvious annoyance.

The villain, who was shrouded in a dark cloak merely stood there flinging things at the teen titans and blocking their every attempt at harming him. There was a pair of limp teenagers at his feet with pale and bluish skin. He was sucking the life blood right out of them with a free hand.

The boy wonder was going to town with his bow-staff. Taking every shot he could and trying to find a weak spot but to no avail. Finally after a few more seconds of the onslaught the villain muttered some strange words under his breath. He then pointed his finger at the masked avenger and let fly a dark cloud which Robin's body absorbed but sent his body back into a wall.

"Starfire! Hit him harder! Raven; try to flank him when he's not looking! Cyborg, let it rip," yelled Robin as he shook himself off.

Robin had been barking so many orders in a matter of minutes that everyone was surprised that he still had a voice at all. He had thrown all his explosives already and knock out gas was definitely not working.

"Beast Boy! Now is not the time to be resting! Go and attack him!"

Beast Boy was not in the mood for this sort of treatment, especially on an empty stomach.

"Lay off Robin, or I swear to got I'm gonna strangle you with your own cape!"

This caused all the others to stop what they were doing for a moment and stare at Beast Boy. He never talked like that to Robin. They all at that point had had enough of this cloaked bad guy.

Starfire launched star bolt after star bolt while Cyborg and Robin launched an all out assault temporarily causing the sorcerer to be overwhelmed. Beast Boy took that opportunity to charge the evil doer as a rhino throwing him into a nearby storefront. He then scooped up the teens and rushed them to safety.

Slowly rising from the rubble of the impact the unknown man tried to regain focus. But before he could Raven had him wrapped in magical bindings.

"Good Work Titans," called Robin as he jogged up, soon followed by an elated Starfire and an exhausted Cyborg.

Raven was working very hard at holding the bad guy, she was realizing very quickly he was even more powerful than they expected.

'Ha Ha Ha Ha. You know you can't hold me you weak half breed. I am ten times your strength.'

The voice kept resonating in her head as she began to sweat with the effort it was taking to hold him. And all the while the look on his face never changed. The gaunt cheeks and pointed chin were as solid as stone. His crystal clear white eyes were like ice boring a hole into the side of her head.

"Robin! Hurry up with the restraints!"

"Hold on Raven. Where's Beast Boy! I have a bone to pick with him!"

Beast Boy now ran over from where the EMTs were hauling away the kids. He

had a sort of relieved grin on his face that did not leave even as he neared a glaring Boy Wonder.

"What the hell is the idea of such insubordination like that in the middle of a fight?! You're lucky I don't put all the chores on you for the rest of the year! And what took you so long in getting back over here?

"Robin!! The restraints," came Ravens pleading voice which caught the attention of the changeling.

"Hey, I'm talking to you Beast Boy," yelled Robin as BB turned to Raven with a look of worry on his face.

He suddenly realized what was going on. Between the fact she was breathing heavy with her hands on the side of her head, and how intensely the cloaked man was staring at her he guessed what was going on. Like a flash he bolted to Robin's motorcycle, grabbed the special handcuffs and threw them on the villain's wrists.

As soon as he had them clasped shut the sage let out an animalistic snarl and then went silent. Raven on the other hand went completely silent and collapsed to the ground with her eyes fluttering shut.

"Raven!"

"Hey! I'm still reprimanding you over here!"

"Well fine bird brain you can finish later, but I don't know if you noticed, but Raven is HURT!"

Either the tone in the shape shifters voice or the look in his eye caused Robin to finally shut up and assess the situation.

"You just wait till later mister! Cyborg, get Raven to the car and get her to the med lab pronto. Starfire you will help me get this creep to the police. Beast Boy I want you to follow them and wait for me to get there, I am not done with you yet."

Beast Boy rolled his eyes and turned to follow an already moving Cyborg. He had no idea what set off Robin so bad there. Sure, they all got into little arguments, but never had any of them received this much flak for a little comment.

"What did you do to piss him off today Beast Boy? Please don't tell me you pulled a stinkball prank on him," asked Cyborg worriedly as he climbed into the driver's seat after gently placing Raven on the back seat.

"I don't know man."

Beast Boy truly didn't know what he did, but he pushed all those thoughts out of his head for the time being, all he cared about was getting his dark friend back to the tower. Without realizing what he was doing he climbed into the back seat and let Raven's head rest on his lap.

Cyborg raised an eyebrow to this act but decided to leave it till later, he had other questions for the time being.

"Hey," he said looking into the rearview mirror as he sped away, "what was going on at the ambulance before you came runnin' over?"

"Oh that, one of the teens was the mayor's son and while they were loading him into the truck his dad invited all of us to his mansion for a get well party."

"Isn't he throwing the party a little early? Do they even know if the kid will be alright?"

"Its not till the end of the month and the EMT's said there was nothing really serious just a lot of lost energy. I think I saw some gray hairs on the kids head"

The changeling chuckled at that last part and it felt good to say the least. The morning had been so terrible so far that a little bit of humor went a long way. Laughter went a long way normally for BB, but it was even more important. Especially with one of his teammates lying unconscious in his lap he needed a pick me up for the moment.

There was no more conversation between the two of them as they neared the tower. The car with its many abilities glided above the surface of the water which surrounded their home. Upon hitting land a bay door automatically opened and the car disappeared into the hole leaving a faint cloud of dust in its wake.

The car came to a stop in the middle of a highly organized and mostly steel and concrete garage. It was every mechanics dream of every tool imaginable, and all the space to use it. Now was not the time for Cyborg to be proud of his shop and nor was it the time for Beast Boy to admire it and they both knew it as they rushed Raven to the elevator. They made it to the medical section of the tower in mere seconds, and it took even less time to hook her up to the space age table they had that only required a few cords to be hooked up to the magical girl.

While Cyborg took care of the technical work Beast Boy took a breather from the sudden fast paced events to look around at the infirmary. He thanked their lucky stars they were so fortunate to have this wonderful facility because there had been numerous occasions where if they had gone to a normal hospital things would not have been done soon enough and with too much red tape. They were even luckier that all of them had been certified in advanced medical training; it sure had come in handy more than a few times.

"Hey BB, keep on eye on things, I'm going to go clean the car and make sure I didn't stress anything with that drive back, I think I set a new record."

"Nah, you drove faster when you heard Bumblebee was waiting here for you two weeks ago."

"Shut up you little grass stain," snarled Cyborg as he walked out of the room blushing madly.

Beast Boy couldn't help but chuckle to himself as he pulled a seat up next to the empathic teen lying on the table. She was still wearing her skin tight leotard but the cape had been removed to give better access. There was one cord on both of her temples, three in a triangle on her chest under the suit.

The green teen couldn't help but be mesmerized by her slow breathing and the pained look on her face. It wasn't one of outright pain and he knew few others who would notice. It was a corruption of her normally peaceful face, and pain was the only thing she couldn't keep from doing that.

"Where is he! He is naïve if he thinks I forgot about him!"

The peacefulness of the gentle humming machines and slow steady breathing was shattered by the loud yells of an enraged Boy Wonder as he drew nearer and nearer to the infirmary.

Trying to make it out of the room so Robin would stop yelling and not disturb Raven, BB leapt to the door only to meet the fuming superhero face to face.

"Trying to hide from me you disrespectful little twerp! You are lucky I'm not allowed to kick the crap out of you for embarrassing me like that today. So now I'm going to have you pull double training and you're going to do all my chores for the next month!"

"Sure, sure, whatever Robin," pleaded Beast Boy, "Keep it down though Raven still hasn't woken up yet, and we still don't know the extent of her injuries! So shhh!"

"Don't you tell me to be quiet, I will make all the noise I want to!"

Beast Boy was about to make another plead for quiet but before he could Starfire called from the kitchen for Robin to explain why something had blown up on the stove when she tried to heat it up.

"Coming Starfire!" called Robin, his face softening at the sound of her voice.

He then gave one last sneer in BB's direction before jogging out of the room. The changeling took a deep breathe and sighed to the relative silence of the medical ward.

A slight moan came from Raven's direction and Beast Boy's ears perked right up.

"What was bide boy screaming about?" came her weak voice, "I only caught bits and pieces of his rant."

"He is still mad about what I said to him earlier. I think he's finally snapping," chuckled Beast Boy. "It just pisses me off how he basically ignored you today. Even now when he came in here like bull in a china shop screaming."

"Thank you Beast Boy, I don't think I've ever been thought of as china," she said her very monotonous tone.

"No problem toots. Do you need me to grab you anything while I'm here?"

"No thanks, and don't ever call me toots again. I think I'm just going to sleep here tonight, I don't feel like even trying to move."

"Sounds fair to me, if you do need anything you know how to reach me. But be careful, if you wake up Robin in the middle of the night be prepared to have him rip you a new one."

"Yeah, I guess you just had some valuable experience in the matter huh?"

"Good. Night. Raven," he said in mock anger through gritted teeth.

"Night," she said as she rolled over pulling the thin blanket around her.

Beast Boy walked out of the infirmary without a second thought before stopping dead in his tracks halfway to his room.

"Holy crap!" he exclaimed out loud. "Did we just get along for five minutes? And the world didn't end! Cool!"

Back in the ward Raven's eyes had shot open to the same realization.

"Whoa," was all she could say before sleep pulled her back into unconsciousness.

R and R people please, it is vital believe me. Good, bad I don't care just review please.

---Iron from the Fire---


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

All was silent throughout Titans Tower at 1:30 in the morning. Throughout the complex the heating and air conditioning duct work rattled only slightly as cool air pumped through the system, and even then it was muffled greatly by the ceiling tiles. The high powered electronic cables running through the walls and floors were giving off a slight hum but were so faint someone would have to strain to hear it.

Beast Boy however with his heightened senses did not need to strain in the least. Tossing and Turning in his sleep something troubled him endlessly. The humming and air flow seemed to be like a freight train running through his head. He finally stopped moving and just laid on his back facing the ceiling with his eyes closed. Even his heart was beating heavily in his chest with loud thumps.

"What the hell," he muttered to the empty air around him. "Maybe if I go for a walk it will calm my nerves."

Getting up he decided that he did not need a shirt to go with his pajama pants. Slowly making his way to the door he kicked discarded clothes out his way making a mental note to clean his room completely some day.

'Well, maybe not completely but enough I can get from one side to the other without tripping over something.'

The hallway was completely barren and almost seemed desolate, like as if any second a tumbleweed my roll by. That was strange for the changeling to feel, especially in a place he called home. He merely shrugged his shoulders and headed towards the stairway. His room was below the common room, so he figured he use a little energy to go get something to eat.

As he neared the stairwell but instead of heading up, he stopped and realized the air vents got louder farther down the shaft. Instead of getting away from the sound his instincts told him to follow it. And follow it he did, right past the floor beneath the one he was on and to the next one.

Here he found the noise so loud he couldn't think. He couldn't hear his heart either anymore, but he did feel it, he could swear in the dark hallway he could see his chest rise with each beat.

'Something isn't right with this," he said almost questioningly.

Now as he traversed the empty passages he was moving with a purpose and all his senses were on alert. He could feel the lightly carpeted floor beneath his tough feet, and the air felt like a desert wind to him. The air was what made him uneasy. It was cold, but there was no life to it, it was empty.

Turning a corner he found himself surprisingly at the medical section of the tower. And to say the air was cold was an understatement. All his hair stood on end as well, not only because of the cold but he knew something else was very off. Walking up to the double doors which contained the ward he began to hear something else. But it wasn't a constant sound. It was a very light thump. He would hear it, but then not again for a few seconds and then again with the same rhythm.

'I need to know what that sound is, it doesn't sound right," he thought as he concentrated on the noise in an almost trance like state.

Pushing the doors open he felt even colder air brush past his dark green skin. His powerful eyes did not need to adjust to dark as he scanned the room for the source of his mysterious noise. The machines on the wall were near silent, and the air was deathly still after the door closed behind him. His eyes continued scanning till they rested on one of the tables. There lay Raven under the thin medical blanket that each table had. She was motionless as Beast Boy continued to focus on her.

Thump…………….Thump……………Thump.

"That's it," he exclaimed in sudden surprise.

He rushed over to her in a flash with all his adrenaline pumping through his veins. He looked above her and saw the machine was off and glancing down he saw that her chest was barley moving at all for her breathing. He put one of his hands on her cheek and was scared to find it cold.

Rushing back over to the door he turned the lights on and found the thermostat near the switch.

"Thirty three freaking degrees!"

He took the dial and spun it up to eighty five degrees. To some relief he noticed the sound of the vent had changed to the deeper sound of the heat kicking in. Bolting to Raven's side he took her pulse and at the same time frantically listened for her heart beat. Her pulse was almost nonexistent and heart beat was getting more and more faint. He gently tucked the blanket she had over her around her sides before he went to all the other beds and grabbed the blankets off them.

"Come on Raven hold on there!" he said rather loudly, hoping that maybe she would hear him. "Hang in there!"

Throwing all the blankets over her he went to the supply closet in the far corner to get some hot water bottles. Much to his dismay there were only two of them and he filled them up rather quickly. Screwing on the final lid he jogged over to the sorceress, placed one under each armpit and folded her hands on her stomach to hold them in place. Still listening to her heart he was upset to learn it was still very weak and in the light of the room her skin looked very blue and not its normal grayish color.

"I'm sorry Raven, please forgive me," he pleaded to the unconscious girl.

He slid his hands under the cover and found her pale unprotected thighs and began to rub them vigorously.

"Stay low Beast Boy, stay low!" he said, nervous of what Raven would do if she woke up. "When she wakes up!" he growled reprimanding himself harshly.

Switching from one leg to the other he continued his efforts to get her blood flowing again. He could feel the air in the room getting steadily warmer, and to his joy when he took a break to feel her cheek to be warmer with some normal color returning as well. This time he expanded the area he was rubbing to her stomach and sides as well. Slowly but surely he could hear her heart pumping more frequently, and as the beats increased so did the strength. He continued his work until he was near exhaustion and sweat was rolling down his back.

Finally her heart was thumping to a normal rhythm and there even some red in her cheeks. He let up for few seconds to reach an arm up to the machine hooked to the cords which were still stuck to the female titan. The computer reset itself then all Raven's vitals appeared on the screen. Her temperature read ninety six point five, and her blood pressure was normal.

Breathing heavily and eyes drooping he simply smiled at the wonderful news before him. He turned and walked to the thermostat turning it back down to the required seventy eight degrees for the ward. The cooler air kept bacteria from flourishing.

"The last thing I need is for her to catch a cold in her weakened condition."

He went and felt her cheek one last time before suddenly dropping to the floor. He sat for a few seconds rubbing his eyes, before lying back letting the cool tile floor send shivers over his sweat covered body. The noises of the tower were now much less prominent, now something else was occupying his senses. It was the thumping Raven's heart as she slept away completely unaware of how close to death she came. The clock on the wall read 2:43 and that was last bit of info Beast Boy needed before letting the now steady thumping of Raven lull him off to a far off land in his dream.

All was silent in Titans Tower as the clock now read 2:45 in the morning. The tower was still desolate as the Titans slept. Well, all but one. As Raven Beast Boy, a pair of glaring eyes peered through the darkness with the deepest contempt for them.

'I didn't think that anyone would noticed a plan as subtle as that, I guess I will just have to try a different approach. If I cant kill them with them looking out for each other, maybe I can make them kill each other!' thought a maniacal voice. 'What do you think Robin? Ha ha ha.'

The eyes squinted for a few seconds before returning back to their icy cold self.

'Now Robin, watch the language, whatever would your beloved family think? Now don't struggle Robin we have work to do tomorrow. Hm Hm Hmm.'

Slipping into the darkness the eyes left, and with them seemed to go all disturbances in tower. Nothing again stirred until the first titans awoke a few hours later in morning. None of which knowing what the next few weeks would have in store for them.

A.N. Hey, guess this story is movin' along pretty quickly, I think I know exactly where I want it to go. Thank you all for the reviews on the first chapter, they are greatly appreciated. But again let me know what you think. Thanks.


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

Raven began to stir around her normal wake up time of 6:30. The air was still and dry as to be expected in a medical ward and the set up of the room was one of isolation and sterility. She never did like the feel of it and made plans to leave as soon as possible. As her grogginess gave way to being alert she stretched under a mass of blankets she did not remember draping over herself the night before. It was then she noticed how that she was boiling under all the insulation. Throwing the sheets from her off to the side of her bed she heard a low 'oomph'.

Peering over the side she stared down at the pile of blankets which now covered a still sound asleep Beast Boy. He was leaning against the hard metal of the machine in what seemed to her a rather uncomfortable looking position. With a quizzical look on her face she decided it was best not wake him. His breathes were long and almost like a sigh of relief with every exhale. As she watched him she found herself almost mesmerized by his slumber, only breaking free when her mind returned to the question of why he was there in the first place.

'I guess the person to ask would be Cyborg,' she thought to herself not knowing how else to figure the changelings presence.

She left the room with every intention of taking a shower before she had the all too common possibility of launching BB out the window into the ocean. Upon arrival at her room she grabbed a fresh uniform from her relatively small closet. She entered the bathroom and proceeded to turn on the water, strip down, enter the welcoming veil of warm water. The bathroom soon began to steam up as she washed herself thoroughly.

'God this feels so good today.' She thought pleasantly as she let the water massage her sore muscles. 'Yesterday must have been a lot harder than it seemed.....hmmm…..yesterday.'

Yesterday. To her it seemed like a surprisingly long time ago. Her thoughts drifted to how hard it was to hold that villains powers in check, and how he knew from their slight connection that she was a half breed. A term that even in such a relatively civil society was still used in sheer disgust at the bearer.

She looked down on her hands as the water streamed down her pale skin. She had tried so hard to rise above the slander and hate of people's natural dislike of her kind. But still there were evil doers who would be especially ruthless with her. Mercy was not something given to half breeds. Her fists clenched in dislike of what she was. The sorcerer had reminded her that no matter how things seemed, she was still an outcast.

Turning off the water she stepped out, dried herself off, and donned her uniform. The cape flowed around her like mist and slowly settled to take the shape of her shoulders and back. She left the hood down so that her still slightly damp hair would have a chance to air dry. She skipped the boots though feeling that today might be a good day to take it easy, she did not want to take any chances when her powers and mind were at risk.

Putting on a pair of comfortable slippers she left her room in search of Cyborg. Her curiosity was certainly getting the better of her. The one thing that seemed to get to her the most though was that she wasn't exactly upset. She just really wanted to know the reason.

She soon passed the med bay and saw that Beast Boy had not moved an inch in the least. Not even a single blanket seemed shifted. This sat uneasily with Raven even though it was a normal thing for Beast Boy it was still unnatural for anything to stay in such an uncomfortable place for so long. She breathed deeply as she walked down the hallway. Everything seemed so much more enjoyable this morning to her.

She soon arrived at Cyborg's large metal door and rapped a few times in hopes that he was there.

"Hold on I'm coming," came his voice from deep within.

The door opened a few seconds later and there stood the large teen with his machinery glowing with its bluish hue.

"Hey Raven!" he exclaimed very surprised. "I didn't expect you to be up and about so soon, but then again I should have known better. How you feelin?"

"I'm doing alright I guess, I just need your help with something," she said politely.

"Sure thing girl, what do ya need?"

"I need to look at the surveillance cameras, I woke up this morning and Beast Boy was asleep on the floor next to my table, and I need to figure out why he was there," she said with her eyebrow raised in suspicion.

"Aw I bet it was just him in one of his watchdog moods. You know how he gets sometimes when he gets a weird feeling. He was really ruffled when you got hurt. I mean, he was still makin' jokes and all but I could tell he was worried."

"Well I'm just trying to figure out why so are you going to help me or not?" she responded defensively putting her hood up ignoring the fact her hair was still slightly damp to hide the slight blush that was growing on her cheeks.

Cyborg laughed at her defensiveness before leading her across the room to a large display of television screens that he normally used for diagnostics on electrical equipment. With a few buttons pressed on the keyboard he brought up an uncharacteristically static security camera.

"What's wrong with the camera?" questioned Raven who was growing slightly impatient with being laughed at and now dealing with delays.

"I don't know it seems like a glitch in the system, hold on."

With some more technical wizardry he fast forwarded the cameras until they became clear again. Now a fair amount of time passed and they kept exploring the tape.

"Hey Raven," spoke up Cyborg worriedly.

"What?" she replied rather uninterestedly.

"Your vitals monitor is off, and the air conditioner got turned on!"

She watched the screen closely and noticed that it was in fact true. A little temperature gauge on the lower corner of the screen showed that it was now steadily dropping. The time kept speeding by for three hours and they watched as no one came to her rescue. Then on an adjacent monitor Beast Boy's form appeared from his doorway stretching and seemingly miserable from insomnia.

"I wonder if he was playing a prank on me," thought the empathy aloud.

It made her mad and upset to think that he would do such a cruel thing to her. But then they watched as he came down the hallway and suddenly go on high alert. He followed an invisible guide to the med lab where they saw him enter and leap into action with such sudden ferocity Raven gasped and Cyborg let out an impressed wow.

They watched as he did everything in his power to raise her body heat, filling the hot water bottles, and even rubbing her thighs, sides, and arms to get the blood going. Now Raven was really happy her hood was up because she was sure she would have looked like a stop sign. Finally the ordeal ended with him collapsing by the side of the bed exhausted. The screen kept going as Raven stood there speechless until the moment she threw the blankets onto her rescuer.

She felt such a sudden pain in her chest from guilt on how she just left him that she had to actually lean on something. The screen finally caught up with real time and Beast Boy had apparently left to get on with his morning. Cyborg turned off the screens but immediately went to work trying to figure out what had caused the apparent malfunction of the cameras, thermostat, and vitals computer.

Raven still stood there utterly speechless while Cyborg toiled with his computers.

"Looks like there was surge of some sort from the main power grid in the tower which reset some of the systems, but I have no idea what happened to the thermostat," admitted the robotic teen, all humor gone from his voice and expression. "Raven, I am so sorry, this should have never happened! If Beast Boy didn't come along or even a little later it might have been….oh man Raven I'm so sorry!"

Raven was a little more composed now that she had time to realize how close she came to death during the night. News like that is never easy to handle, but she figured she was doing it rather well. She also made the connection between the way she was feeling this morning and the incident.

"Don't worry about it Cy," she said softly. "I'm still here, thanks to Beast Boy."

She had to say that in her head a few times to let it sink in.

"Wow. Still, that fact this happened and most of us including you didn't even know about it," he stopped at is lost in thought. Then his brow furrowed and his fist clenched in determination. "At least now I have the chance to keep it from happening again. I'm not gonna let a glitch off any my family, especially my little sis!"

"Thanks Cyborg, I really do appreciate it," she replied. "I think I'm gonna go find Beast Boy and try and thank him."

"Thank him for me as well girl. He really did save the day, er night, I guess."

"Yeah, you're right. Well I'll see you later Cyborg, thanks again for everything."

"Don't worry about it, I'm just glad your alright," he said as she walked out the door and he began to furiously assault his keyboard in an effort to fix the flaw in the system.

Raven wandered down the halls in the direction of the common room and hopefully if all things went well, soon a nice hot cup of tea. The floor felt very comfortable on her thinly covered feet to the point where she almost felt like taking them off.

'Everything feels so much, more, since what happened last night,' she thought as she continued her journey.

She then lowered her hood and let the air return to her hair which had dried for the most part now. Soon she arrived at the common room and the door slid open just as it always had. She still felt a little drained so even the simple act of an automatic door was nice. Looking around the room she saw Robin on the couch watching the news with an angry expression. She was really hoping he would be in a better mood this morning.

Over in the kitchen sat Beast Boy on one of their stools which surrounded the little island table. Everything in the building had a slight bluish metallic look to it and Beast Boy's green form stuck out easily enough. He had a coffee cup sitting in front of him still steaming, but his head was resting on his arms. As to be expected the little bit of sleep he got, leaning against the vitals monitor did not mean much.

She watched him with sudden sadness and wondered if insomnia was the reason for his late mornings and lack of energy. She moved across the room, her cape flowing in the air elegantly, but settling as she slowed to approach her friend. She did not want to wake him but she figured it was best so Robin had nothing to complain about.

"Beast Boy," she whispered near his ear as she put a small hand on his shoulder, which surprised her because she never realized how broad they were. He felt warm to the touch which would have worried her if it were anyone else. Beast Boy was different, green skin and a fiery temperature were side effects of the disease that gave him his powers.

'I really don't mind,' she said in her head blushing slightly at the thought. But it was true and she knew it. The mere placement of her hand on his masculine shoulder had flooded her body with warmth. It seemed to travel through her spreading to the farthest corners.

"Beast Boy," she said a little louder.

He suddenly awoke like someone had fired a gun.

"Raven!" he growled rather loudly, but necessarily at her.

He seemed to be looking around as if expecting to find danger or trouble. He was breathing heavy and his fists were clenched, but the only trouble he found was from Robin.

"Hey!" he snarled from the couch. "I'm trying to watch the news, keep it down unless you want more chores!"

Beast Boy growled a little deep in his throat, but he soon calmed down at the sight of the sorceress teen beside him who still bore a startled look on her face.

"Raven!" he said happily, you're alright.

He immediately brought her into an embrace which ended just as quickly as it started. Raven felt the world grow cold as he left her but at the same time she was overcome with embarrassment at his brash action. Beast Boy never seemed to notice as he guided Raven over to a stool.

"Beast Boy I was going to make a cup of tea," she stated as coolly as she could, still flustered from the hug.

"Sit down Raven you shouldn't be up just yet anyway," ordered the shape shifter rather abruptly catching the empathy off guard yet again.

She did as she was told watching him scuttle around the kitchen getting all the stuff ready for making her tea. He grabbed her favorite mug, which was a plain creamy white one. It held just the right amount of water for her. He then reached into a very high cabinet shelf retrieving a tea bag from the hidden box. There was already a kettle on the stove with water all ready for tea. Beast boy combined all the things, but before handing it to his friend, he added a slight drop of honey. He then took the mug and delivered it to Raven.

She was surprised not only by the precision of his making of the tea, but also by the taste and how it was just how she liked it.

"Whoa," she said in shock. "It's good."

"What, no faith in my abilities Raven?"

"No," she replied monotonously.

"You give me so little credit," he joked as he returned to his stool which happened to be across from her. "So how are you feeling this morning?"

"Alive, thanks to you," she said very bluntly.

Now it was Beast Boy's turn to get caught off guard.

"How did you find out?" he asked rather quietly.

"I went to Cyborg and asked him to help me figure out why you were in there. Turns out the system malfunctioned, if you didn't come by when you did…."

She stopped there taking a deep breath because no matter how many times she said it, it still bothered her.

"Thank you Beast Boy, I owe you my life," she said all the while staring down at her tea mug with sudden interest.

"Raven, you don't owe me jack squat. You are my friend and I don't want anything to happen to you," spoke the changeling whole heartedly.

"Well thanks anyway, and thanks for the tea, it's really good."

She recovered quickly from BB's statement and somehow gained enough composure to get one final thanks in. Sipping away at her tea they just sat there in silence as Beast Boy drank his coffee. For those brief few minutes all was right with the world neither had to worry about much. That is until the morning news was over and Robin stood up.

"You two," he snapped, "Get ready for training, the bad guys don't rest and neither will we."

This was not something that Raven wanted to hear, and it kind of ruined the mellow mood her and Beast Boy had going.

"Hey Robin, I'm trying to make sure I don't over tax my powers, I think it would be best if I sat out today."

Robin's head slowly turned to Raven and seemed to contemplate the situation, but then he frowned as if thinking about it made him angry.

"Plus man she had a really rough night, did you know that th-." "I know about all that, Cyborg called me over the communicator and filled me in."

"Oh good, then you know that it's probably best that Raven stay well rested today right?"

"No, actually I feel just the opposite about this situation; she should have woken up and protected herself."

"Hey!" yelled Raven suddenly jumping into the argument.

"Enough!" ordered Robin, "Beast Boy you were insubordinate yesterday and this is your punishment, Raven you of all people I think could use a little toughening up! I want no more excuses and problems when we go to take down a bad guy! I want both of you outside in two minutes."

With that the boy wonder whipped around and stormed out of the room most likely on his way to get the others ready. Beast Boy and raven turned to one another and shared looks of surprise, confusion, and anger.

"Where does he come off yelling at us like that, and saying that bull about you?" snarled Beast Boy angrily, his temper rising.

"Well, he is right, I probably could be stronger in fights, there's always more that I can do. I am relatively weak."

Beast Boy clenched the edge of the table, his knuckles going white, "Don't ever say that again Raven, we all know what you went through and it was terrible. If anything you are the strongest of all of us. And you do pull your own weight there is no doubt about that."

She could tell by his body language that the argument with Robin had really riled him up. She rested her hand on his forearm to offer a little comfort to him, not that she expected it to help.

"Thank you Beast Boy, that really does mean a lot to me," she said so softly it was almost inaudible.

Just like as if he was hit with a tranquilizer dart, his arms relaxed, and his breathing deepened. He closed his eyes and took a few refreshing breathes.

"Thanks Rae, I've just been getting so pissed off lately at Robin. He's jumping down my throat for no reason lately. And you really should be resting."

"I'm sure I'll be alright, lets go, we don't want bird brain finding any more reasons to yell. I'd hate for him to have a raspy voice for the reporters."

Beast Boy burst out into much needed laughter and Raven even smirked at her own sarcasm. With that much needed lift in spirits they headed outside into the blue sky of Jump City. Little did they know their day was just beginning.

A.N.: I know it's been a while, please review people, I love getting them whether they say it's good or bad. Thanks.


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4**

After three long grueling hours of practice, four of the five teenagers were nearing exhaustion. Robin stood at the top of an outcropping with the controls of the training area. It was a large barren clearing behind the titans' tower. It was getting increasingly dusty as the hot sun beat down on them.

Cyborg had been the first to have a go through the course. With Robin's insistence on using the 'ridiculous' difficulty setting he was now lying on the ground in the waiting area attempting to turn all systems onto power saver so he had enough juice to get back to his room. Starfire had gone after him, and had not fared much better, catching a few explosive disks to her stomach.

Raven was next in line. Robin still would not listen to Beast Boy's protests against making Raven do the session. Taking a deep breathe though she took the starting line and tried to relax her mind. She was having trouble blocking the other's emotions from overwhelming her. She could feel Robin's anger, and Starfire's exhaustion. Then she began to feel Beast Boy's worry for her safety and hope that she would complete the course. Robin had made it clear that not clearing the course meant doing it over five more times or until it was finished.

'Don't worry Beast Boy I'll show him what ridiculous is,' she said telepathically to him.

Beast Boy jumped a little from where he was standing but when he looked over at Raven and saw her staring back it became clear to him.

'I have faith in you but it's just not fair!'

'Since when has life been fair to any of us?'

'Point well made. Just know I'm here for you if you need anything.'

'Why are you being so nice to me Beast Boy?

Beast Boy stopped and thought about it for a second. Before he could say anything back the siren went off starting the session. Raven immediately had to leap out of the way of flying energy bolts. Everywhere she landed from dodging them seemed to attract more.

'Wow,' she thought worriedly, 'I guess this is harder than it seems.'

She preceded to destroy the guns shooting the bolts, only to find more pop around her, and out of the ground rose training bots, all trying to take Raven down. Flying up in the air she used one hand with a magic shield on it to block things flying at her, while she flung the bots into one another smashing them to bits.

Just when it seemed she was getting the upper hand in the battle newer bots emerged with jet packs which allowed them to bring the fight back to Raven. She held her own for a few more minutes before one of them made it through and clipped her shoulder spinning her around and opening a shot for an energy blast, which took her from the sky. A loud thump and a dust cloud resulted from her impact with the ground.

'BEAST BOY,' she telepathically yelled to him, 'I can't do it! I don't have the energy!'

'Yes you can Raven! Take mine if you need it!'

Raven looked up a the bots which were diving down towards her, and the energy bolts whizzing just over her. She thought quickly about her decision before closing her eyes and letting instinct take over. Beast Boy suddenly felt his legs buckle and his strength leave him. He fell to his knees but never took his eyes off of where the sorceress was. He gasped as the bots collided into the ground where she was. Cyborg even looked up at the sound of the crash.

The dust from the impact soon blew away and there stood Raven with a shield surrounding her. Her eyes were glowing with power and they did not look happy. The protective shell dissipated into another small shield on her left arm. Instead of using her powers to throw the bots around, this time Raven had conjured a black whip that resembled her black tendrils of magic. With a graceful flick of her wrist, the whip struck the ground near some advancing enemies.

The ground exploded beneath them with the energy of the impact as Raven blocked some more energy blasts. A few more bots attacked and similar to before but Raven again with a simple movement directed the whip at them and it sliced through all of them with ease. The whip seemed to lengthen as needed, but never departed from its elegance even on impact with bot after bot.

The other teammates just watched as Raven took on an aura of power and simply walked from one end of the course to the other destroying everything along the way. Only once did she falter, and that was when the final wave of bots swarmed her, but a few well placed shots beat them back completing the course.

Beast Boy and everyone else in the waiting area stood dumbfounded and awestruck by the comeback.

"Raven, that was amazing!" exclaimed Starfire happily.

"I don't think I've ever seen anything like that before," said Cyborg.

Raven walked over to them and saw Beast Boy kneeling on the ground with a smile on his face. Her brow wrinkled with worry at his pale face.

"I told you, you could do it."

With that he fell backwards and closed his eyes for a second.

"Beast Boy!" she said worriedly as she ran to his side. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine Raven, I'm glad I could help you out."

"What does that mean?" growled an angry Robin as he walked up to them.

"Beast Boy had me—" "Had her listen to my words of encouragement for once," exclaimed Beast Boy interrupting Raven suddenly with a nervous chuckle.

'Don't let him know anything, if he finds out he will make you do the course again, and then it will be for nothing,' he thought to her as he got and walked to the start line.

'Do you have enough to make it though? I don't know if I have enough to send some energy back to you. I'm sorry Beast Boy.'

'Ah, I'll be fine, you just rest okay.' "Come on Robin, are we gonna get this training thing on or stand around till supper?"

Robin growled at Beast Boy's comment.

"Raven, next time I hope you don't hold back in battle. You are only making things harder on us when we have to take up your slack," scolded Robin before heading back up to the control panel.

Raven stood there shocked at what he said, with a terrible feeling in her stomach. Beast Boy only steeled his mind more for the upcoming challenge. The siren sounded again and Beast Boy leapt right into the offensive destroying the first few cannons in the form of a giant gorilla. Shifting into a rhinoceros he plowed through multiple bots leaving strewn electrical parts in his wake. From his left side though a massive energy blast knocked him clean off his feet and into a large rock.

Beast Boy had been doing a very good job of keeping moving and dodging the blasts up till now. The guns were now much more accurate and seemed to be predicting the changeling's moves instead of reacting to them like the computer usually does. Raven glanced up at Robin and saw him furiously using the control panel, and she realized he was gunning for Beast Boy.

Beast Boy did not last much longer as the combination of energy blasts and bots brought him to the ground in a heap during the second wave. The bots quickly piled on top of him thoroughly capturing him. This time a different toned sound was heard denoting the failure of the session.

Raven ran up and began digging out Beast Boy from the pile of now shut down robots. She found him beat up and a little charred.

"Is it time for breakfast mommy," he said exhaustedly.

Raven rolled her eyes and went down to help him.

"Robin was directing the fire of the guns at you, you didn't stand a chance."

"I figured as much," said Beast Boy simply as he slowly dusted himself off.

"How can you say that! You're going to have to do the course again!"

"I'll be fine Raven, and since when did you start caring?"

It was Raven's turn to be stopped by a question and before she could answer, Robin came down and interrupted them.

"Beast Boy that was pathetic, I expected more from someone that can change into any animal. Looks like you really do need more training."

"Robin that's not fair and you know it," said Raven somewhat quietly. She was still stung from his earlier comment.

"Raven I want you and the others to go back inside. You guys are done for today. Beast Boy and I will finish up out here."

Raven looked Robin in the eye and felt something in her gut she could not explain. She just knew something was not right. Without knowing what else she could do, she took a worried glance at the green titan before leaving and telling the others the orders. Starfire ended up helping Cyborg make it to his room and Raven carried some of his pieces that had fallen off in the battle. Once inside Cyborg began to complain about Robin.

"What the heck is that bird-brain thinking? There is no reason for this level of training! I don't think the Justice League trains their people this hard!"

"Perhaps friend Robin is only worried we might run into a very tough foe in the future," said Starfire sadly.

"There was something off in his eyes when he was talking to me," said Raven distantly as she stared at the ground absorbed in her thoughts. "Starfire, maybe you could talk to him and see if you can find out anything?"

"I would be glad to friend Raven, but I fear I will have to wait till tomorrow. This day's training has robbed me of my energy."

Raven and Starfire left Cyborg in his room to deal with repairs, and then the two went their separate ways in the hallway. Raven went her room and grabbed her things and headed to the shower. While she was washing up, she contemplated the day.

"What the heck is with Robin lately. I hope he isn't going too hard on Beast Boy."

That thought made Raven stop and think about what she was saying.

"Since when do I care what happens to Beast Boy?"

'You've always cared, he is your friend, and that's what friends do,' her emotions responded to her.

"But I hate Beast Boy,"

'No you don't, you are just quick to judge him.'

"..."

Raven finished up and returned to her room where she continued to ponder her own thoughts as she combed her hair. Her stomach growled lightly and decided it was time to get some food, with any luck Beast Boy was done and she could thank him properly for his help earlier.

The doors to the common room whooshed open and revealed no one to Raven. She tried to shake off the worry and began making herself a cup of tea. Mid boil she jumped at the sound of the siren going off. Her hopes dropped even lower as she realized it was the failure sound.

'They must still be going at it. I wish I could help Beast Boy. I mean, he did help me when I was too weak to do anything.'

She poured the boiling water into her tea cup and began mixing the ingredients.

'Too weak…..too weak. I guess that sums me up then.'

She sat down on one of the stools and thought about those words, and what Robin had said to her earlier. The siren sounded again and faint explosions could be heard coming from the training field.

'I feel terrible Beast Boy gave up his energy for me to finish, and now he has to go through that course so many more times now,' she thought angrily. 'There has to be a way to make this up to him.'

Raven sipped at her tea and thought about her options. Nothing really jumped out at her as a fantastic idea. Then some of Beast Boy's words echoed through her head.

'Since when do you care Raven.'

"I guess our friendship needs some work," she said aloud before thinking about all her previous encounters with Beast Boy; most of them ending with him going through a window.

"I guess that's a place to start,"

"What's a good place to start?" asked Beast Boy from the entranceway.

He was covered in dust and blood, and there were multiple spots were singed flesh peeked through his tattered uniform.

"Oh my god Beast Boy! Are you okay," exclaimed Raven as she rushed to him.

"I'm fine Raven, I'm just gonna go sit down and eat something."

Raven helped Beast Boy over to one of the stools and quickly grabbed him some water. He gulped it down in a matter of seconds and then rested his head on the table. Raven sat down next to him and put her hands on his arm. Beast Boy flinched at first to the touch but soon relaxed at the blue healing glow that was emitted from Raven's hands.

"How many times did you have to do it?"

"I finished it on my fifth try," replied the changeling tiredly.

"How did you manage that?"

"I let the beast out," said Beast Boy sadly.

"I've told you before that its part of you. You need to come to terms with it being a part of you."

"Robin was yellin' at me for letting it out though. He says I shouldn't rely on my primal nature and should actually try thinking for once."

"Robin hasn't been himself lately, and I saw it in his eyes. There is something going on that we don't know about. I know its not an excuse, but Starfire is going to try to figure out what it is."

"What about you? He was pretty harsh on you as well. I hope you are not taking his words to heart."

Raven sighed slightly, before removing her hands from her friend.

"I'm trying not to, but anytime someone says something like that you begin to question yourself."

"Well you of all people shouldn't!" said Beast Boy, his tired voice now swapped out for one of authority. "You have done so much for this team and I know you always give it your best. So don't even think about listening to that fool."

Raven was speechless, and as she looked at Beast Boy trying to understand what just happened, he spoke again.

"Hey Raven, that tea smells real good. Do you think you could make me some?"

Raven again sat there for a second before responding.

"Sure, but I thought you hated tea."

"I've never tried it before. You shouldn't jump to conclusions."

Raven was getting sick of the sick feeling in her stomach and just continued to brew the tea. She filled a cup with the water and was almost done with the rest of the ingredients when she decided what she wanted to say.

"Beast Boy, I wanted to thank you for what you did for me today. You didn't need to and I'm sorry it caused you all this pain."

She turned around timidly to give Beast Boy the cup and found him fast asleep on the counter.

'I should have seen that coming.'

She set the cup down in front of him and grabbed a blanket from the couch. Before putting it on him she took another look at his torn uniform and realized she owed him a lot more than an apology. After wrapping him up she left the common room and went to bed, still trying to come up with some way to pay him back.

Beast Boy woke up in the middle of the night with a cold shiver. The blanket fell off of him and he groggily opened his eyes only to focus on the cold cup of tea in front of him.

'I feel like such a jerk, after I asked her to make this.'

Beast Boy gulped down the tea and found it surprisingly tasty for its temperature. Grabbing the blanket he slowly nursed his aching body down the hall and into his own room. There he collapsed on his bed and soon began dozing off.

'Today wasn't my day, and tomorrow don't look either.'

With that thought, Beast Boy fell fast asleep, unaware as always what the next day held in store for him.


End file.
